Tuesday, 16 October 2012

Petals - Whether to Drown (Sheepscar Light Industrial)
This week we are listening to some very good electronic noise music by a man from Huddersfield who calls himself Petals when he makes music. Petal's real name though is Kevin Sanders and I got to hear about him because he is a friend of Stewart who is a support worker where I live; Stewart is a very nice person and I went to a football match with him yesterday on Wormwood Scrubs and we talked about these reviews and his friends strange music. The reason this music is strange is that it doesn't really sound much like most music because it doesn't have a beat in it and instead is lots of long noises - it isn't really like much music i've heard before but I think that's okay because it's just different and I think it's good to listen to different things because it makes a nice change. You can see how strange Kevin's music is and see what he looks like here on this video that he sent us where he is making music by throwing a cymbal on the floor and smashing it with a stick. I liked this video very much.

The first song on this CD is called Calm (Before a Storm) and it is a very long track because it is over fifteen minutes long. It starts off with a slow noise a bit like a church organ which is quite quiet but then it gets louder (but still very slow) and starts sounding a bit like a factory where they are working on big machines or like an airport when all the planes are taking off. This noise keeps getting louder and bigger until it is very loud indeed and it seems like there are lots of different noises making one big noise and I thought this was very interesting. About half way through you start hearing the organ playing again and some noise like a detuned radio and even though it is noisy music I thought it was quite relaxing and I sat back in the comfy chair at the Gate and closed my eyes when we were listening to it. I think this would be a good song to listen to on earphones so you could turn it up really loud because I think that loud would be the best way to listen to it. The sounds on this track all quieten down at the end and as it got quieter it made me think of sheep grazing in a field, I liked this track a lot.

Holborn Viaduct in the past.

Holborn Viaduct now.

The next track - which is also the last one because there are only two on this CD - is called Viaduct for Two and this made me think of the Holborn Viaduct which is an old big bridge in London which I like a lot. This one is shorter than the last one because it is only five minutes long and it starts off noisy with lots of noises which reminded me a bit of traffic noise or maybe the sound of ships coming in blowing their funnels. The song is like the last one because it gets noisier and noisier as it goes on and I think it might even be noisier than the last one though it also goes all soft again at the end. I liked this one two.
Overall I enjoyed this CD very much and thought it was very good to listen too because it is very strange. I think that it's good to listen to strange music though because then you get to hear things that you've never heard before. If you want to listen to this CD yourself you can listen to it on this thing below and I think people should because they might like it. I would give this CD 10 out of 10.Whether to Drown by Petals

Thursday, 4 October 2012

Barbaros - "000" (Human Feather)
This time I am record reviewing a new record by a funny looking band from Liverpool, the reason they are funny looking is because they wear skin-tight masks and suits and look a bit like naked creatures from outer space. Barbaros are a band with three people in it, two drummers and a synthesiser player and they make music that is a bit like rock and a bit like electronic music and I like them a lot. Here is a video of Barbaros so you can see what they look like and hear the music they play:

The first song on the "000" record is called Hot Squash which is what you call orange cordial when you make it with hot water which I suppose would be a nice drink though I wouldn't know because the only hot drinks I have are coffee and occasionally hot chocolate. The song starts of with the drums playing quietly and then after that the synthesiser comes in and the drums get more louder and quick, there are no vocals on it though because it is an instrumental and it doesn't need any because it is good as it is. I liked this song a lot because it is very loud and noisy and it made me think of a crazy party where everyone is having a good time. If I was to have a party this would be the sort of band I would like to play it.

"000"

The second tune on the record is called Accent and it is another crazy tune like the last one because it is also very noisy and fast and good to listen to. On this one the keyboards reminded me a bit of a church organ but this isn't really music like you would have in a church though because it's probably a bit too loud. My favourite bit in this song is in the middle where it stops and then starts up again with the drums going really quick and then some strange gospel type singing and very noisy synthesiser sounds - I thought this tune was excellent and I liked how it kept changing.
After Accent the next song is called Les Noisettes which means the hazelnuts in french which is a strange thing to call a song and after that there is a song called Colin and Cindy. These two songs are both loud and quick instrumentals which reminded me of one of those bands that bang their guitars on the floor, it is very fun music because of how noisy and chaotic it is and I really like it.
Moon Boots is the last song on the record and this one is another crazy instrumental which reminded me of music improvisation sessions we have here at the Gate on a monday afternoon. The reason it reminds me of our improvisation sessions is that we have keyboards and lots of drums here too but we also have guitars and lots of singing so maybe it's not so similar after all. I thought this was another really good song and a good way to end the record.
Overall I would say that this was a very good record to listen to and like I said earlier I think they would be a good band to have at a party because they are very energetic and I think everyone would like them. I would give this record 10 out of 10.

About Me

My name is Peter Kemp and I live in Shepherds Bush, London. I like playing my records, Cd's, DVD's and Videos and being the presenter of Video Drama (see below). My favourite music is sixties music but i like all kinds.